


In Our Dry Cellar

by EudociaCovert



Series: Death's Other Kingdom [1]
Category: The Hollow (Cartoon)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Platonic Cuddling, Post-Canon, Referenced Romance, Spoilers, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 23:54:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 836
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14988272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EudociaCovert/pseuds/EudociaCovert
Summary: The team always debriefs after a game.





	In Our Dry Cellar

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "The Hollow Men" by T.S. Eliot. I don't know, could leave this as a one shot or add to it later, still deciding. Let me know what you guys think!

They always debrief after a game.

There’s a certain image to uphold for the crowd, for their fans, but after they’re ushered from the room and the prize money is safely sequestered away they always find somewhere to let the masks drop.

“Something went wrong,” Kai says the moment they step into Mira’s block and the door slides shut behind them. “Very wrong.”

Mira flops onto her mattress and sighs in relief. “Are we sure the glitching wasn’t part of the game? Something unexpected to boost viewership.” she asks. Kai sets the trophy down near the wall and lowers himself to sit next to her sprawled form.

Adam rubs at his eyes. They all have headaches after a game, but he tends to get them the worst. “Even if it was, it should have been in the waiver. We need to look for a new gamemaster.”

“Sit down man, you’re about to fall over.”

It’s easier to follow Kai’s advice when they know each other. Adam sits at the end of the bed. Kai reaches over and shoves at his forehead until he’s slumped back over Mira’s calves.

“He’s a good one, though. High prize money.” Mira murmurs. Adam would bet anything her eyes are already closed.

“Not worth losing our lives.”

Kai laughs, two huffs of sound. “Yeah, cuz our lives are worth _so much_.”

Adam reaches blindly out to poke the boy in the ribs. When did it get so dark? Oh, his eyes must be closed too. “They are,” he states firmly, no room for questions. “They are worth something. Not in the  _to society_ way, just… they are.”

“Yeah, I know.” There’s a moment of silence, and then two thumps as Kai sheds his shoes. Adam can feel him settle, curled up at Mira’s side. He tucks his socked feet under Adam’s back.

“Right. How’s everyone holding up?”

Kai groans and Mira makes a noise like a pissed off rabbit. “Can’t this wait?”

“Nope! Talk as soon as the game ends, that’s our team rule.”

There's nothing but the sound of air filtering through the vents for a moment, and then…

“I didn’t hit it off with you. Again.”

Adam pushes back into the mattress, putting pressure on Kai’s feet. “We usually don’t. We didn’t in real life either.”

“I know, I know, it’s just…”

“You know the Luck Draw has a lot to do with that,” Mira points out. “Want one of us to take it?”

“No! No, it’s a good role for me.”

“It wears on you mentally,” Adam points out. “The Luck Draw’s great for stumbling onto puzzles, but always being the one to trigger traps, that’s got to mess with your self-perception.”

“We can’t do without it, not yet, the games infinitely harder without the Luck Draw,” Kai starts, firm as always. “ And of the three of us, I’m the obvious player for it, Mira gets bothered if she’s falling on her face every five minutes and has a harder time with puzzles, which we need her for,” a hum of agreement from Mira. “And Adam, you take your goofs way to seriously, you’d spiral into a personal angst hole and we’d never be able to get you out.”

Adam thinks about misplacing a foot in the jet and watching Mira falling away from them, into the dark of the ocean. Kai’s probably right. “You know it’s an asset, right? You’re taking a hit for the team that neither of us could handle half as well.”

“Yeah. Yeah, thanks.”

“But our in-game dynamics are still an issue for you.”

“Could you and I just, I don’t know, hang out a bit before the next time? I know we’re all super busy, but…”

“Definitely,” Adam nods. “it’s settled, next weekend we don’t play, it’s a team bonding day.”

“You rhyme more when you’re tired.”

“How about you Mira, all kosher?”

Silence.

“She asleep?”

Kai shifts to look, accidentally digging his toes into Adam’s ribs. “Can’t tell.”

Adam smirks. “She kissed me again.”

Mira promptly extracts her legs from under his neck and kicks him off the bed. “Adam!”

Curled up on Mira’s floor Adam’s laughing without meaning to, which is the best kind of laughing. “Ow.”

“High stress environment,” Kai’s voice is unbothered. “Pretty sure everyone’s kissed everyone by now.”

“We good there?” Adam sits up, peaking over the edge of the bed.

“We’re good.” Mira grumbles into her folded arms. “It’s just embarrassing.”

“Okay, good. Anything else?”

“Anything else can wait, get back up here.”

“Kai-“

“No listen, we’re fine, we’ll still be fine after the like, four hours you’re capable of sleeping at a stretch. Get back up here and zonk out, fearless leader.”

Adam does as he’s told. Just as he’s drifting off he hears the wail of the siren signaling that curfew in now in effect, and the automatic lock engage on Mira’s door.

The best thing about playing The Hollow is that without fail Adam always assumes that wherever home is, it’s somewhere better.


End file.
